


Independant Manifestation

by Verse



Category: Fate/Grand Order
Genre: Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, Gen, POV Outsider
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-03-04 07:28:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24740026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Verse/pseuds/Verse
Summary: "What, did you think I'd manifest as a Caster? With what spells? Haven't you heard the stories? My strength has never laid in magecraft."
Comments: 3
Kudos: 90





	Independant Manifestation

Working in Chaldea is, by far, the most _fascinating_ job you've ever had. 

Though that is to be expected. Come on, it's _Chaldea_! The legendary organisation that stopped Humanity’s incineration seventy years ago! How could it _not_ be exciting. Every once in a while you run into a record, a crumbled diary page hidden under a painting, something that wasn’t erased or otherwise tampered with, and it's like Christmas all over again. Oh, if only someone from the old staff still worked here! You have _so_ many questions. Chaldea is the subject of many whispers and legends, but not even the current staffs knows how truthful these rumors are.

Sometimes, you walk across the hall and wonder how it must have looked like back then, filled to the brim with heroes of legends and mana. Oh, what wouldn’t you give for a chance to meet Humanity’s Last Master, The One Of A Thousand Bonds, The Immortal!

But, well. Right now you’d mostly like someone to tell you while your computer is returning a servant signal.

“Did someone turn the sensors towards Fuyuki?” You shout as you smash your fingers on the keyboard. “We _know_ there’s a Holy Grail war going on, no need to ruin our comps over it!”

A chorus of “nope” “not me” “whoever did this will get my fucking _beating”_ answers you, as you all work on turning the goddamn alarm off. Swears are yelled in at least five different languages. Someone punches a wall. Who the _fuck_ designed that software?? Why isn’t there a simple stop button-

A hand reaches from behind you, press a couple keys, and the alarm _finally_ dies down.

“… Holy shit.” You turn to look behind you. “How did you know th-”

You freeze.

This. Is not a member of the staff.

“Yeah, we had the same problem back in the days.” You don’t know where to set your gaze. _Everything_ about this person screams _wrong wrong WRONG._ Scars. Blank eye. Teeth. _WRONG. WRONG. WRONG._ “We just disabled it permanently, but I guess you guys would need it back on, huh?”

No one speaks. None of you have ever seen any pictures, never read a consistant description of them, but these scars. These scars are in every legends.

“You are The Immortal.” You speak in a quiet breath.

They frown, displeased. “Unkillable. I am _unkillable._ The difference is important.”

You- they- why-

“Anyway. This is my master!” They suddenly haul something up, and- you hadn’t noticed, focused as you were on the walking legend before your eyes, but there was a kid hanging onto their leg, now lifted in the air. A little girl. Nine, ten at most. She’s clinging to their arms like her life depends on it. “We’re going to be living here from now on, so I thought we should introduced ourselves!”

Your mind grinds to a halt, but someone else in the staff puts two and two together for you.

“You guys are from the Holy Grail War.”

“Yep!” The- servant, for that has to be a servant, beams. “We come from pretty far, as you can guess. Which is why we’re just gonna get some zzz now. Poor girl’s exhausted, you see. But I figured it was important to let you guys know we were here first, as to avoid any sort of vivisecting. I’m not fond of these, I’ll admit.”

“What the f-”

“How did you even-”

“You can’t _do_ that.” Someone speak louder than the others, disbelief obvious. “That’s- that’s against the rules!”

The servant blinks. Once. Twice. “… Anyway.” They set the kid back down. You know that kid. That’s- shit, you’re pretty sure that’s one of the kids from the major families. Which one is it? You can’t remember. Who did that servant steal?? “We’ll get going, I’m sure you guys still have a lot of spare rooms. See y’all!”

Wh- no!

You launch onto their sleeve. “You can’t just come here and then- leave with no explanation! Why are you even here??”

They blink. “It’s my home?”

“That’s not what I’m _asking_.” You’ve heard Humanity’s Last Master to be a bit dim, but with the raising panic in your throat, you can’t find it in yourself to be more understanding. “Why are you here?? Why aren’t you in the War?? Don’t you know _nothing_ can be done without seven servants??”

They tilt their head. “The little one wished to get out of her family.” They squeeze the kid’s hand. “You don’t need the grail for that sort of wish. So I just decided to fulfill it myself.”

Incomprehensible! Thank you! 

…

“Oh my god.” The realisation dawns on you. “You’re a _berserker.”_

“Oh! You’re smart!” And- they- pat your head??? They pat your head??? “The kid’s parents weren’t so much. They’re not the first ones to try to summon me, you know? But I wasn’t fond of my previous masters. They thought I’d be easier to control if they used their child to summon me.”

They gaze their gaze down, almost sheepish. “I’d honestly forgotten how fragile human spines can be. I don’t like killing. I really didn’t want to do that.”


End file.
